[If problems arise during palliative sedation: considerations in sedation in the terminal phase].

Palliative sedation is increasingly being utilised when patients are close to death. Despite clear guidelines, its implementation is often problematic. In this clinical lesson we describe two patients in whom sedation did not go according to plan. The first case concerns a relative overdose of the medication which resulted in agitation, and the second case concerns the premature initiation of palliative sedation which caused the period of sedation to last too long. Suggestions are made to prevent these problems occurring.